I am pleased to FINALLY announce that last night was our first night at our new home! After years of waiting for this day to come it finally arrived! The staff of Guadalupe Home, the advisory board of Guadalupe Home, the Catholic Charities Archdiocese of San Antonio, the mothers we assist, their infants and the babies waiting to arrive in this world, I’m CERTAIN are all just as excited about this as I am.

I truly believe everything happens for a reason and Bob and Carmen Drury of Drury Hotels came into our lives to help us help even more women and children with this new home. Thinking about it makes me tear up because I am so thankful and happy.

2012 WILL be amazing for Guadalupe Home and I cannot wait for all of the new and exciting things that will follow this!

As you know by now, my maltipoo is one of many loves in my life. I probably take about 3 pictures a day of him. At least. It’s an obsession I know.

After taking so many photos, I realized that Carlos definitely looks good in pictures. I like to joke he’s photogenic because he got it from me. Seeing how I have so many contacts in “the industry” as we like to call it, I decided to put them to use. Long story short, my baby Carlos has an agent! Yep he’s going to earn his puppy chow!

As soon as he’s fully trained, lost his puppy teeth and ready to work I have a photo shoot planned for him and then we’ll start submitting him for jobs. I hope he gets to be “cute dog” in a commercial or the dog they show running down stairs to eat his food. Time will tell, but I have faith in him. He’s just so adorable!!!

(Unedited/Raw Photo by Schwartz Studios)

This past week I have been discussing television news internships with a professor at UTSA. In preparing for my submissions, I took the liberty of asking three specific individuals to write a letter of recommendation for me, so I will stand out and be that much closer to my dream internship. Each individual is extremely respected at what they do in their profession and I could not be more thankful.

What took me by surprise was that these letters made me evaluate my life again on a very deep level. Each letter is different from the other. While they each have some overlapping “qualities” in them … it’s not until someone writes specifically about you that you realize certain things.

Each person knows me for a different reason, yet every one of them mentioned my nonprofit work or that I am passionate about helping others. If I were to die tomorrow, I would hope one of the things people would say about me was that I sincerely cared for those who need assistance in a time of need. If I don’t have money to give, I will always give my time and my heart. I want my legacy to reflect that. If I were to die tomorrow, I would be at peace knowing this.

I always say becoming Miss Latina World was the best AND the worst thing that ever happened to me. One of the reasons I say it was the best, is it truly helped me realize how much I love nonprofit work. I would never take that back. I am who I am today because I learned more about myself during my reign.

Now if only I could find a way to become extremely rich, so I didn’t need to work and my “work” could be making a bigger difference in the world. *sigh* We all have dreams. Maybe, just maybe, if I dream big enough and work hard enough … I can make it come true.

In December 2009, I was involved in a car accident. Thankfully my biggest injury was a tear in my rotator cuff. After 3 months of physical therapy at a rehabilitation center, I was finally feeling better again. Since then my shoulder has been fine and I’ve never had a problem with it.

This week that pain came back with a vengence. It turns out helping move a 10 foot conference table in stiletto heel boots and a pencil skirt (yes you need to know those details because that’s how I roll) can tear your rotator cuff. And let me tell you the pain is excruciating. The next day I had to leave mid work day to the doctor, because I couldn’t bear the pain. So now my dream of spending 2012 perfecting my golf game and playing competitive softball again are over. Now I have to start over again in terms of my shoulder strength and let my tear heal itself.

I wanted to spend my last week before school being active outside. Seeing how running means moving my arms back and forth, I guess some power walking will have to do? Lame. What can I do that doesn’t involve my left shoulder moving at all?! Pilates only using my right arm? Bike riding at the gym?

Yesterday I wanted to be outside and do something active, but I wasn’t sure what. Then I decided, why not try golf? When I was a teenager my parents would send me to golf and tennis camp at a country club nearby and I wasn’t half bad. So why not pick up the sport again?

I went with my boyfriend and my little sister Damaris who is only in town for a short while longer. We started practice shots at the driving range, then some putting, then started on the course. Granted, it was only a par 3, but you can’t start off shooting 18 holes on a difficult course your first time.

We actually didn’t do too bad. I had two holes where I made it in 4 shots, but my worst was an 11. Yep, an 11. The green had this crazy angle and I was about 3 inches from the hole 4 times before it finally went in. That same hole I made an 11 on … MY SISTER MADE A HOLE IN ONE! Her first time golfing EVER and she made a hole in one! It was AMAZING! People wait their whole lives for something like that and she did it on her first try! And to think the hole before she made an 11 and the hole after a 7. Talk about beginners luck!

At the end of the day, we had spent hours on the golf course and had a great time. I want 2012 to be a year of trying new things and being more active outside, other than softball. Maybe golf is a new sport I can play. Time will tell.

This Christmas my amazing and beyond perfect boyfriend gave me a puppy (maltipoo) as one of my presents. Of course he came before Christmas and I even picked him out, but he has been an amazing addition to our lives.

Marshall and I are now trying to train Carlos in many ways. He is barely 12 weeks old but he can already fetch, sit, climb stairs, shake and he just started to become crate trained. We’re only on Day 3 and he hasn’t had one single accident!

Carlos is also growing extremely fast. Just 3 weeks ago he was only 3 pounds and now he is 5 1/2! (He should be anywhere from 8 – 10 pounds when he is fully grown.) I can’t wait to continue training Carlos and see just how smart, loving and fun he will continue to be. I love this little guy. Carlos Friday has my heart. He really does.

Working at a law firm I see a lot of things. Things I obviously can’t talk about in detail, however there has always been something I wonder about.

Every now and then we have someone come to our office who received a DWI. And every now and then their mother or father will pay for their attorneys fees. Being that I work at a law firm, I don’t really think I should ever judge if the client pays the bill or a family member does. However, I always wonder to myself, “if my child had a DWI would I pay for their attorneys fees?” I don’t have a child, so I don’t know this answer, but it’s something I always wonder.

Would you foot the bill if it were your child?

This summer our home was burglarized. Me, my sister and both my parents were all out of town when it happened. None of us had any idea we would come home to a scary situation like this. You never think it will happen to you. Especially us. Living in the hill country on 4 acres of fenced property, having 2 Great Dane dogs and being in a “safe” area, we never thought this would happen to us. But it did.

Thinking about it now it could have been our fault. I had posted on my Facebook a picture of the condo I was staying at out of town. My sister had also posted on her Facebook she was going out of town as well. Granted she didn’t say she was with my parents, but maybe that was all it took for someone to know it was the perfect time to burglarize our house.

They always tell you that when something like this happens 9 times out of 10 it’s someone who knows you, or a person who knows someone you know. In this case I would agree with that. Our electric gate (which you need a code for to open) was not tampered with when we came home. Our two Great Dane dogs were not hurt. So how did they get past the gate and our extremely large dogs?

It’s been 7 months since our home was burglarized. The day after it happened my boyfriend Marshall (he is the district residential sales manager for ADT) went to our house to set us up with an ADT security system. The following day we were up and running. Now it is habit to always set our home alarm. We even set it at night in case something should happen as we’re sleeping. Although someone would have to be VERY bold to do that. I sleep with a gun under my pillow and my dad … well he’s the reason I am the way I am. I’ll leave it at that.

Unfortunately, we will never get back our prized possessions. The electronics and jewelry can be replaced, but it’s the sentimental items that hurt the most. Jewelry our family had for over 30 years. The bracelet I was given when my grandma died. The first diamond ring my father ever gave my mother. It’s those items, and the scary feeling in your gut that someone was going through your items in your home, that hurt the most.

This holiday season be smart and be safe. We never thought this would happen to us and it did. Even the safest neighborhoods can be a target. And don’t tell people when you are out of town. If you do, be sure to set your home alarm system. And if you don’t have one call (210) 403-4537 and talk to Marshall. He’ll have an ADT sales rep help set you up with an alarm system.

The holiday season and summer are peak times for burglaries. Please be extra careful. I would never want anyone to feel what we felt when we were burglarized. It is a feeling that is difficult to explain or understand, unless it has happened to you.

This photo is from Fandango. To the right of me is Hattie Poole (co-founder of Guadalupe Home), Steve Saldaña (President of Catholic Charities) and Carmen Drury (Drury Hotels). Guadalupe Home would not be what it is today if it were not for these amazing people.

This photo is from the Cystic Fibrosis gala. The second from the left is my friend Harriet. Harriet and I helped volunteer at this event through PRSSA. Ironically, I have supported Cystic Fibrosis in the past with my Miss Latina World title at the Tower Run they have annually. It’s nice to see familiar faces and also help another wonderful cause.

Regardless of whether or not I have a crown on my head, or I’m wearing a sash, I will always be eager to help others. If there is one thing I learned from being a former title holder that I will always treasure, it is learning how much I love non-profit work. Helping those in need, making a difference in the community and starting a legacy of my own are extremely important to me.